Octopus Energy urges households not to run two household appliances on Wednesday

NewsCost Of LivingOctopus EnergyThe energy giant has urged customers to avoid running them13:31, 10 Aug 2026Octopus Energy has urged millions of households to use less electricity during the solar eclipse. The energy giant has urged customers to avoid running washing machines and dishwashers between 6pm and 8pm on Wednesday.The solar eclipse is expected to wipe out 9.7GW of power production across Europe between 7.15pm and 9.30pm. In the UK this could mean losing between 700 megawatts and 1.3GW of solar generation.“Household flexibility is one of Britain’s biggest untapped energy resources,” the supplier said. “Octopus estimates homes could provide a whopping 13 gigawatts of flexible capacity to support the electricity system – particularly through smart appliances, EVs and home batteries